Crying at the River
by Hiraethe
Summary: After Jellal and Erza's "kiss scene", and Erza is crying at the river, what events will unfold?


The moment Jellal pushed her, she knew it would never work out.

They had been just about to kiss. Her heart had been thumping out of her chest, her mind entangled in a jungle of recklessness and romance. And then, the feeling ended as soon as it came, a flash, a spasm, that seemed to fade into a dull ache. As much as she accepted Jellal: as much as she LOVED him, she had to let go.

She let out a sob. She hated it. Another sob escaped, and another, and another, until the river she sat next to glimmered in condolence and a familiar hand came down on her shoulder. She gasped, her eyes widening and her breath hitching.

"Erza."

She slowly turned around, to see the one and only Gray Fullbuster standing beside her. His features were unreadable, his mouth drawn in a straight line. His eyes were directed to her, stern yet with slight shimmers of concern.

"Gray," she choked out, before more tears slid down her face. He moved to sit down next to her, looking silently to the horizon, putting an arm around her. She moved closer to him, laying her head on his shoulder. They sat in silence, with only a few sniffles from Erza here and there, yet, for the first time in a while, the world seemed peaceful, without the pained cries in the world, the screams of despair, and their world narrowed down to the ice mage, the scarlet haired knight, and the river. Suddenly, Gray looked at her.

"Hey...what did I tell you about crying by yourself?" he asked sharply. "We're your friends." Erza sniffled a bit more, reflecting back to the aftermath of the Eclipse.

 _Erza couldn't tell if it was just her, or there was actually someone sniffling inside the carriage. Her older sister instincts kicked in...she should have Mirajane check all of them in case they were getting colds. However, when she heard a deep sob, she got up quickly from her spot and walked over to the raven haired boy who she had the pleasure of calling one of her best friends: Gray Fullbuster. She tapped him on the shoulder, only to be ignored._

" _Erza, something wrong?" Lucy asked sleepily. She had been trying desperately to not get vomit on her clothing from Natsu, and, as the dragon slayer had fallen asleep, she had finally gotten the opportunity to pay attention to the scene in front of her._

" _Gray, are you okay?" Happy asked._

" _Yeah, I'm fine." Gray said. All of them were a bit taken about at the tender, broken sound of his voice, and Lucy moved closer to him in concern._

" _Um, Gray, are you sure? Were you crying?" Lucy asked, going over towards Erza, who was rubbing a soothing hand on his back._

" _No. It's bad allergies. Go back to sleep." Gray said, rubbing his arm over his eyes. Erza took one last look at him, before pulling Lucy away. The blonde looked idnignantly over at her._

" _He's hurting, Erza! We should-"_

" _No. Gray isn't one to share his feelings with others. Let him be." she said, and, that was that._

"It's about Jellal, isn't it?" he asked quietly, so quietly that she could barely hear him at all. She snuggled closer to him, nodding. He grunted in disapproval.

To tell the truth, Gray had never liked Jellal. But, he reasoned, if that was the person that could make her happy, then he was all for it. However, here she was _crying_. Icy anger simmered inside him.

"Gray," she choked out, tears returning to her eyes, "make it stop hurting." His eyes widened at her request, before she climbed into his arms, and began to sob wildly into his chest. His hands, which had been almost paralyzed for a while, hesitantly wrapped around her. He had never been good with the comforting thing - he was more suited for hurting people - but, Erza needed him. He had never really been needed before, but he felt was being needed right now. He kissed the top of her head, holding her tight as he felt his chest become damp with tears.

"Don't worry, Erza. I'm here for you. Forever."

And, even though he couldn't see her face, he swore he could feel a smile form on her lips.


End file.
